CH3 - Sean B. Norman

Brisbane City, St Davis Hospital

Monday, 7th of February

06:59

"Sean Benjamin Miller... is it?" Dr. Hoang asked as he looked up from his clipboard.

"Yes, that's me." I nodded in affirmation.

"Sean, your surname is clearly Miller whilst your guardians were both Joseph and Kristen Norman. Why is that?" Damn. I really liked the guy but that's kind of a sore topic for me.

I really felt like giving him a tight slap, however I resisted the urge to do so.

"Joseph is my adoptive father." I responded and answered his question in a cool and composed manner.

Dr. Hoang raised his eyebrows. "Is that so? On the records and your papers and even on your Medicare as it should be stated, they are you guardians and not adoptive parents." Dr. Hoang sated.

I couldn't help but feel angry as I snapped a little. "So what? He was my family. And now? He's dead. Gone. No more. What more do you ask me this for?" I looked at Dr. Hoang straight in the eyes with a slightly fierce look in my eyes.

The man next to Dr. Hoang since entering the room even until now had not even said a word as he watched on from the side at our interactions.

"I've noticed you haven't even mentioned your other guardian Kristen, what is your relationship with her? Where was she when the both of you were at risk of fatal injuries."

"That woman has nothing to do with us." I said promptly and decisively.

"She is just on those papers for formalities as she was Joseph's wife before she got divorced." I stated another unpleasant part of my childhood relationship with that woman.

In my eyes, the woman known as Kristen Norman was a dead woman to me. Any profanities, I would call her that within my head. She mostly married Joseph for his money and was extremely displeased with him and I when he had decided to take me in. She was a witch who had made my life unbearable at the time. However, I had long learned too ignore her.

Not even after one year of being taken in by Joseph, She had filed for a divorce within 9 months of me being there.

"Do you have any idea how many holes and legal issues that single statement just opened up?" Dr. Hoang took a deep sigh as he looked at me as he took a seat on a conveniently placed chair next to my hospital bed. The man next to him did not take a seat.

"Okay, about your injury..." Dr. Hoang began whilst taking a few glances at his clipboard.

"Let's start from the beginning. Alright, You've been shot in the foot by a bullet. Unlucky or as expected of what happened, you were hit by a 230gr .45 ACP ammunition, it was still lodged within your leg."

"Was your injury life threatening at the time? No way. apart from blood loss in the surrounding arteries you would have been in no way threatened by death."

I sighed slowly while still thinking of the pain from last night.

I had never felt so much pain in my entire life before. I even suspect and can expect my kneecap to have even shattered. Shit. Could I be a cripple now? It can't be that bad right. I knew it was that bad but I wish to give myself a bit of hope.

However, I felt my expression turn ugly as Dr. Hoang poured a bucket of water on my head.

"Your kneecap will never be able to be completely restored. even with a few years of reconstructive surgery and recovery, you would not be able or expected to walk, run, or climb the same way you have had for the rest of your life."

Fuck! Too cruel! This was too cruel!

I felt my world go dizzy as such a shattering piece of information had been disclosed to me.

That murderer! Even if he let me live, he would make my life almost as bad as death!

"Lucky for you that it wasn't a ball ammunition, that round could have gone straight through your knee, shatter you patella and exit through the rear crevice of your leg."

"How the hell is that any better?" I cried out.

"Well assuming it had been a dead on shot, you wouldn't even have been able to use that leg at all. Your joints that would have connected to your femur would have been disintegrated."

"..." I was speechless. This was such a look on the bright side look on what happened I wasn't sure whether I should laugh or cry. No. Cry. I definitely wanted to cry.

"You're going to need a full kneecap replacement with bolts and titanium. This might take from a period of 12 months or more."

Nooooooo!!! Never in my life would I have imagined myself needing bolts or titanium in my body. Only very old men or injured soldiers to my knowledge needed those. Bwahuhuhu I felt like sobbing.

I felt heartbroken.

"Wait! I can't afford that!" My face immediately paled. The hospital room I was in felt incomparably scary now. I'm an orphan now. My adoptive father is dead. That wench will certainly not take me in and I have no one else in the world. I was powerless. I had no one and no money.

As if not hearing my cries, Dr. Hoang continued. "The costs of a full knee replacement should range from around $17,000 to $30,000."

Fuck! This guy! He was just adding salt to injuries.

Doctors...! No. The medical system is truly is heartless! Doesn't this country have free healthcare? I felt wronged!

Wouldn't I have to be kept here as hostage and work away as a slave and sleep in the hospital to pay away my debt?

I began to freak out internally as I stayed silent on the outside.

I looked around the room once more. Sigh this is where I shall be living for the rest of my life as I slave away to pay my debt. This murderer was really going to indirectly kill me.

Whilst looking around the room, the man who had been quiet this entire time next to Dr. Hoang now had a brilliant smile with hidden malice on his face as he was about to open his mouth to say.

"Hehe." The man gave out a light-hearted chuckle as he gave a me a hardy and warm smile.

"Sean, no need to worry about all that. After all, this is the sole reason for my being here." The man said in a friendly yet formal manner.

I couldn't help but get a weird feeling from this.

Why's that? I have never met this man in my life yet he claims he was here to help me?

"Ah, uhh... what do you mean by that sir?" I responded politely.

"Hahaha!" The man gave out a hearty bellow as I began to inspect him. He was a middle aged man who looked to be in his late 40's and nearing his 50's. He had jet black hair and dark brown eyes like that of dark oak wood.

"Sean, young man, from this day forth, you shall be known as Sean Benjamin Norman."